A 20-year journey through the lens of Nick Lonsdale, former CEO
This year, NashTech celebrates its 20th year of delivering technology excellence. From establishing its first development centre in Hanoi, Vietnam in 2000, to becoming one of the leading technology companies in Vietnam, NashTech has come a long way.
The growth of NashTech over the last 20 years is an achievement we are hugely proud of. We started with a small office in 2000 and now have over seven offices internationally, with thousands of technical experts who are constantly encouraged to challenge traditional thinking, be honest and react quickly to change.
It is important for us, as a company, to reflect on the past, and more importantly, to focus on the future. Nick Lonsdale, former CEO of NashTech, helps us look at the journey we have been on so that the past is embraced, and the future is envisaged.
A cherished journey of pride and emotion
Nick shared that 23 years ago, he traveled to Vietnam for the first time and fell in love with the country. To now be leading a business based in Vietnam is very special to him.
“Accepting the job offer from Paul Smith, and joining NashTech, is one of the best decisions I’ve ever made. NashTech’s heart beats in Vietnam. The growth and achievements I have seen in the five years I have been with the business is only a fraction of the success of the last 20 years.”
Nick Lonsdale, former CEO – NashTech
Overcoming obstacles and becoming stronger
Like any journey there will be obstacles, and overcoming these only makes us stronger.
“There have been challenges along the way. And it will always be like that. But, solving challenges and problems is what keeps me so engaged at work”. We, as a team, have overcome them by talking to each other openly, encouraging ourselves to think outside the box, and reacting quickly to change” he stated.
One of the major achievements we have are the partnerships we have built with our clients. Nick shared that, “it is so important for us to be able to retain our clients, it validates what we are doing and what we believe in. We are honest, dependable and supportive”. During these pandemic times this has presented a huge challenge, but the NashTech board have sailed a sensible route through uncharted waters.
Early on in 2020 as the epidemic became a pandemic we had to react quickly but in an incredibly considered way. Nick shared that, “we had to take a step back and think, ‘what do we want see in our post-Covid world?’ The team considered many outcomes and came to the decision that, more importantly than anything else, we want our clients to have the confidence that they will be working with the same team on their projects. To do this, we needed to remember our core values; what is best for our people, for our clients and how do we create success”. NashTech, as a company, has always been open to change, to learn, and pursue the best. That is also what we encourage our teams, in any location, at any position, to embrace and pass through generations.”
Throughout the 20-year journey, NashTech has always been a people-oriented and open-minded organisation. We put continuous effort into investing and nurturing our teams, creating an environment where they can grow professionally and personally. This shines through the various activities that we have been doing; from training our employees, offering opportunities for them to challenge themselves and grow, to conducting research and exploring new tech, all of which benefits not only ourselves but also our clients. Our clients especially value NashTech being disarmingly open – it allows us to get to issues and solutions even faster than some of our competition.
A thrilling future: my vision for NashTech
It is essential to remember where you have come from, but it is more important for us to look ahead, to the future which we can influence. Thinking about the vision for NashTech for the next few years, we can sum it up in four key focus areas; people, technology, communication and expansion.
Nurturing talent to create success
Nick shared that, “the future for NashTech is defined in our strategy: it’s our people. Both the people within our organisation and the people within our clients’ organisations that we strive to create success for”.
NashTech’s focus is to recruit the best people to join the team, nurture talent and encourage them to invest their careers with us. This is a proven model that creates value for careers, clients and of course allows NashTech to grow its capabilities and geographic reach.
Keeping pace with technology
With ever-changing technology, NashTech is on a continuous program to improve and adapt. However, the pace and nature of change needs to recognise an urgency to succeed with an executable plan.
“One of the key things that we do as a business, which I’m proud of, is that we are considered about decisions we take. This is done rapidly with a trusted team and having evaluated possible outcomes we then implement without delay.”
Nick Lonsdale, former CEO – NashTech
NashTech is different because our client discussions will be value-oriented, advising on how and where to invest in their technology strategy. We stay for the ride too; having influenced decisions our credibility rests on achieving the planned outcome.
Exploring emerging technologies and creating use cases for our clients is one of the goals on NashTech’s pathway. That’s why we have invested heavily in advanced technologies such as Robotic Process Automation (RPA), Machine Learning, Artificial Intelligence (AI), Cloud Computing, Microservices, Data Analytics, etc.
We will continue to invest in emerging technologies to achieve full potential for our teams and clients.
Communicate, even when the going gets tough
Nick shared that one of the characteristics that makes him really proud of NashTech is the nature of being responsive, authentic and disarmingly open to our clients. Whenever problems occur, without disguising or blaming, we always communicate with clients to walk them through the situation honestly and openly.
Expanding our footprint
Building on the success we have across our seven locations, including the UK, Vietnam, Japan, Singapore, Australia, the USA and Poland, Nick gave us some insight into the plan for expansion.
“NashTech’s heart beats in Vietnam and that will always be the case. In the near future, NashTech is looking forward to extending the capabilities we have in Vietnam with expertise from other regions.”
Nick Lonsdale, former CEO – NashTech
Nick went on to share that, in these locations, NashTech will explore the availability of talent and skillsets that will complement our existing strengths and services.
In forward looking, Nick has shown his optimism for the future of NashTech:
“I joined a company that is a big team with a warm heart, and it has not changed since. To me, it is the natural spirit, the “how do we do even better” mindset that sets us apart. This “good to great” spirit is what has helped us reach 20 years of striving for the best and delivering excellence to our clients.”
“I’m very proud of the business that we have today and even more excited at the opportunities that lie ahead of us! Genuinely, I am. Each of our NashTech family around the world are talking to clients about growth and technology. For this we need to hire the cleverest people we can find, and that’s what we are doing today and will continue to do.” – Nick shared enthusiastically.
Two decades have passed. By celebrating and closing one twenty-year long chapter, we are opening our next successful one and are ready for what awaits us ahead. Through the thick and thin, we are proud of our past, treasure our present and look forward to the future with unflagging determination.
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